Caroline Guizol got a message at 9:20 p.m. Nov. 3 that no one wants to hear: La Provence, the Bigfork restaurant she owns with her husband, Marc, was on fire.

Her alarm company called her at home to report that a heat sensor had triggered the alarm and that the fire department had been summoned. She didn’t know what to think since the restaurant had been closed since midafternoon that Tuesday.

“I was freaking out,” Guizol said.

She didn’t know that Fletcher Anderson, the closest thing to a superhero in Bigfork, was flying to the scene. Normally a mild-mannered bartender at the Garden Bar, Anderson has a habit of showing up to save the day.

On Tuesday night, Anderson said, he stopped for a cocktail at the Garden Bar. Anderson said someone said something was going on down at La Provence, so he went over to check it out.

Anderson said Kim Kauk, La Provence’s deli manager, was trying to unlock and open the door. When she succeeded, he noticed a fire extinguisher just inside the door, so he grabbed it and rushed into the kitchen to put out the fire without concern for his own safety.

“I didn’t really think about it — it was instinct,” he said. “I know Frenchy, the owner.”

Kauk and the tenant of an apartment downstairs also entered the restaurant to check other areas for fire.

Katie Edwards, a captain with Bigfork Fire Department, said she was also on the scene and was checking out the building with the fire trucks about two minutes behind her. While she agrees Anderson had the best of intentions, she points out he and the others could have been severely injured from fire or poisonous fumes.

“I’d hate to have people think it’s OK to do that,” she said.

Anderson downplays his role, but in Guizol’s eyes he saved the family business from disaster. Stuck in Creston with four children, she said there was no way that she could get there in time to make a difference.

“I had to wait for a neighbor to come over,” she said.

Her husband, the chef who runs the business, was out of town. By the time Guizol was able to get into Bigfork, Anderson had put out the fire and Bigfork Volunteer Fire Department units were there performing mop-up activities.

She said the fire chief told her that the fire was put out at a critical point.

“He said, ‘By the time we got there [with engines] the whole place would have been engulfed,” Guizol said.

Instead of rebuilding the entire restaurant, the Guizols only had to replace one wall in the kitchen and employ a product to eliminate smoke damage. She said the restaurant was closed for just three days.

“We got very, very lucky,” Guizol said.

The fire originated from some freshly washed kitchen rags that were taken out of the dryer at about 12:30 p.m. and placed in a bucket.

“They spontaneously combusted around 9 p.m. — it had taken that many hours,” Guizol said. “They just exploded.”

She said she thought it was very strange but has since done some research and learned the dangers of spontaneous combustion. It’s the same process that occurs with damp hay that burns down barns.

Guizol noted that the fire had burned right up to large containers of fryer oil that could have accelerated the burning. In 10 years of operation, La Provence has never had any type of fire.

She didn’t know the night of the fire that Anderson was the one who put out the fire. Guizol said she doesn’t know him, but she sends her heartfelt thanks to him.

“If not for him we would be out of business to rebuild the restaurant,” she said.

Later Guizol discovered that this was not the first time Anderson has jumped in to help in an emergency.

A few weeks ago, he and another bartender, Josh Searcy, heard that a kayaker was in peril after an accident on the Swan River.

When his friend came into the bar looking for help, Anderson and Searcy raced out to the river.

“He was on the opposite side of the river and he started to swim across,” Anderson said. “We helped him out and through the woods then brought him in the bar and warmed him up.”

The kayaker had dislocated his shoulder and was suffering from hypothermia by the time they got him inside.

Again in this situation, Edwards said the Bigfork department does not want untrained people attempting water rescues. She said they should always call 911 and wait for the experts with the training and equipment to handle the problem.

Anderson has taken snow rescue training and put it to good use as a member of the ski patrol at Blacktail Mountain Ski Resort. He starts his fifth season on the patrol this year and is taking EMT training to expand his skills and open up some other career possibilities.

“I plan on seeing where it can take me,” he said.

Guizol would love to give him a hearty recommendation for any future job that involves rescuing people and property. She said she has heard he’s often the first person to show up when someone gets into trouble at the ski resort.

“I think this guy Fletcher is pretty amazing,” Guizol said.

Reporter Candace Chase may be reached at 758-4436 or by e-mail at cchase@dailyinterlake.com.